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Showdown Ahead on Immigration Lawsuits
Mississippi lawmakers are headed for a standoff on two provisions of a proposed Arizona-style immigration bill. The House of Representatives passed Senate Bill 2179 yesterday but stripped a controversial section that would that would allow citizens to sue local law enforcement and public officials for not enforcing the restrictions. In its place, the House inserted a provision allowing citizens to take a business to court for hiring undocumented workers.
Kenneth Braswell
Kenneth Braswell wants fathers to step up. The keynote speaker at Jackson Public Schools' Dads of Destiny Conference this evening, Braswell advocates for responsible fatherhood through his organization, Fathers Incorporated, and the New York State Fatherhood Initiative.
Cutting Out The Pigs
The University of Mississippi Medical Center is one of only seven medical schools in the United States that still uses live animals to teach medical students basic physiology, pharmacology or surgery.
JPS Board Won't Renew Edwards' Contract
The Jackson Public Schools Board of Trustees voted during its Dec. 7 meeting not to renew Superintendent Lonnie Edwards' contract for the upcoming school year, Board Attorney Dorian Turner told the Jackson Free Press today. The 3-1 vote came during executive session, and the board informed Edwards of its decision at a meeting this afternoon, Turner said.
Airing Abuse
When does sunshine become an invasion of privacy? Television station WDAM, an NBC affiliate in Hattiesburg, has what it says is video evidence of abuse at the Forrest County Juvenile Detention Center--a physical altercation between staff and six youth detainees. A Youth Court judge has blocked the station from broadcasting the videotape, however, on the grounds that the footage isn't essential to the station's reporting and that airing it would endanger the juveniles' right to privacy.
Jamie Scott Hospitalized
Less than three weeks after her release from prison, Jamie Scott has been hospitalized. Activist Nancy Lockhart, who worked for more than five years to free Jamie and her sister, Gladys, said in an e-mail press release that Jamie was admitted to the hospital in Pensacola, Fla., today for an "excessively high potassium level." Jamie Scott suffers from diabetes and has been diagnosed with renal failure. Her medical conditions, and the cost of caring for her, was one of Gov. Haley Barbour's justifications for ordering the suspension of her and Gladys' life sentences for a 1993 armed robbery.
Baptist's Belhaven Shakeup; New Pizza Shack Opening
Baptist Health Systems will break ground this year on a five-story, mixed-use building in Belhaven. The 130,000-square-foot facility will house four floors of medical offices and a ground floor of retail on the North State Street site currently occupied by KFC. Baptist spokesman Robby Channell said that a start date for construction will likely depend on the possible relocation of Keifer's Restaurant. Baptist is in final negotiations to purchase the Keifer's property, and the restaurant is considering a move nearby.
UMMC Targeted for Use of Live Pigs
Read the complaint
Shirley Brewer
Shirley Brewer has seen plenty of changes from her perch at the Fondren McDade's Market. Brewer has worked at the grocery store for the past 27 years, seeing the business change names and owners from Jitney Jungle to Winn-Dixie to, in 2004, McDade's.
Chandler Griffin
For years, Chandler Griffin has observed the tough work of international development. As a documentary filmmaker for nonprofit organizations working in Rwanda and Uganda, among other countries, the Jackson native has seen the challenges of trying to build sustainable programs. But he never imagined tackling those challenges himself.
State of the State: A Fact-Check
Gov. Haley Barbour used his final State of the State address, on Jan. 11, to tout his resume of accomplishments over two terms. Ever the savvy political communicator, the governor stretched the truth and papered over the more complicated reality. In other instances, his claims were outright wrong. Here's a selection of Barbour's claims and that truth behind them.
History's Return
Gov. Haley Barbour is a sucker for anniversaries, apparently. In his final State of the State address last week, the governor said that 2011—the 50th anniversary of the Freedom Rides and the 150th anniversary of the start of the Civil War—was the year to make a proposed Mississippi Civil Rights Museum a reality.
The Slippery Arena Study
The push for an entertainment arena in downtown Jackson, once a private endeavor, is now a matter for city government. Last month, the steering committee of business leaders that has been raising funds for an arena feasibility study handed control of the project to Jackson Mayor Harvey Johnson Jr.
Arizona-Style Immigration Bill Advances, In A Hurry
The Mississippi Senate passed a bill modeled after Arizona's anti-immigrant law SB 1070 today, despite protests by some Democrats that the measure was rife with errors carried over from the other state's law.
New Eats; Small Business Loans Available
Longtime Fondren lunch spot Brent's Drugs started serving breakfast Saturday. The soda fountain and lunch counter closed its pharmacy operation in 2009, and new owner Brad Reeves has had his sights on serving breakfast since purchasing the venerable eatery. The morning menu includes traditional Southern breakfast fare and lighter dishes.
Civil Rights Museum Stirs Controversy, Again
State lawmakers will have a chance to act on Gov. Haley Barbour's recent call to move a proposed state civil-rights museum to downtown Jackson. Sen. John Horhn, D-Jackson, told the Jackson Free Press Friday that he will introduce bills today to restart the planning process for a civil-rights museum, which has stalled since a Barbour-appointed commission selected Tougaloo College for its location in 2008.
Midtown Center Promotes Prosperity
The effort to revitalize Jackson's Midtown neighborhood has a new arm. The Prosperity Center of Greater Jackson pairs traditional welfare services with counseling and wellness programs, Kristi Hendrix, executive director of Midtown Partners, told an audience at Koinonia Coffee House's Friday Forum today.
Ruth's Chris Employee Fired Over E-Mail
The general manager of Ruth's Chris Steak House in Ridgeland has been fired, following an e-mail exchange in which he used the word "ghetto" to describe a reservation request by an African American woman. The manager, Andy Nesenson, forwarded LaTrenda Watson's Jan. 11 reservation request to Sales and Marketing Manager Wendy Partain with the comment, "Another ghetto Sat. Party. They really love us don't they. Especially on Sat."
House Approves Eminent Domain Limits
The Mississippi House of Representatives passed a bill yesterday restricting the use of eminent domain. The measure is similar to a voter initiative scheduled for the 2011 ballot and a 2009 bill that Gov. Haley Barbour vetoed, arguing that it would hurt job creation.
Teaching The Truth
Next year, for the first time, Mississippi will require all social-studies teachers to teach the history of civil rights in the state. The requirement will come more than five years after state lawmakers initially approved the curriculum change.